


Gargoyle

by Rikkamaru



Series: Random Discontinued Stories [5]
Category: Batman (Comics), DCU (Comics), Red Robin (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Family, Gen, Role Reversal, Tim Drake is Older
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-07
Updated: 2019-02-07
Packaged: 2019-10-23 22:35:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17692391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rikkamaru/pseuds/Rikkamaru
Summary: Dick felt like his world was coming to an end as he sobbed on the floor of the big top. And Tim Drake may not know what Bruce was thinking, taking this child under his care, but he could certainly help out.





	Gargoyle

Dick stared fixedly at the ground as the world around him tilted on its axis. He was afraid to look up, afraid to see his parents’ bodies just _lying_ there like puppets with their strings cut. Cut like the lines because they weren’t faulty his parents checked them before every performance. His parents didn’t die from an accident it was planned, they were _murdered_ –

“Did Bruce seriously just leave you here with his jacket for comfort?” a voice asked, irritated and long-suffering, cutting through his thoughts quite easily as a person crouched down next to him to better examine him. Dick flinched a little but looked up and stared at ice blue eyes.

The owner of the eyes was clearly older than him by a few years and was clearly concerned, looking him over and offering Dick a small, comforting smile. He had hair that went to his jaw and sharp features that were currently softened by his smile and Dick instinctively gave a tremulous smile back. “I’m sorry for your loss,” the older boy said, and Dick felt his breath hitch a little before he got it back under control. But the older boy clearly saw what he was doing and made a small, soft sound and hesitantly reached out.

Dick saw the open arms, saw the nervous look in the other’s eyes, and reacted immediately. He wrapped his arms around the older boy, felt the little wall he’d put between him and his emotions crumble down, and began to sob into the other’s shoulder. He stayed like that for what felt like hours, clinging onto the teen and trying to draw as much comfort as he could from the thin but strong arms wrapped around him, before he heard a throat clear behind him. "Tim? Is he...alright?"

The teen, Tim, hooked his chin over Dick's shoulder and sounded annoyed. "Physically, he's fine. However, you _did_ leave him here with nothing but your jacket for comfort, so _no_ , he is not alright at the moment, Bruce." 

The reprimand hung between the two as Dick stopped crying, breath still hitching as he burrowed deeper into Tim’s arms, before he heard a sigh. “Right. Sorry, I should have sent you over to him immediately instead of having you wait for the police.”

Tim huffed at the older man in irritation and it was then that Dick felt him try to move away. Dick whined a soft protest and pushed further into his embrace, his own arms snaking up around the teen’s neck and legs trying to wrap around Tim’s waist. Tim paused at the movement before sighing and adjusting his own hold so that he was propping Dick up on his hip. “So, what did Commissioner Gordon say?” Dick reluctantly pulled his face away from Tim’s neck and turned to look at the older man who was watching them with a small amount of disquiet.

“He’s fine with me having custody of Dick for the time being, until they figure out what happened and where to go from here,” Bruce told Tim, and for a heart stopping second Dick thought that he would be taken away from Tim and left with the large man. He swung around to beg the teen do something when he saw Tim give the man a wan smile.

“I’m sure Alfred will be quite pleased to have a new child in the house to dote on,” Tim assured him. “Do you have everything? We can probably leave now and get back to the house in good time.”

Bruce affirmed that he had everything and the two walked out together, Dick still propped on Tim’s hip as he watched the two of them with wide eyes. He wanted to ask a lot of questions: was Bruce Tim’s dad? Was the house nice? Tim wasn’t going to leave, was he? Instead of saying any of that he returned his head to Tim’s shoulder and closed his eyes in exhaustion.

He woke up for a moment when they got into a car, Dick whining in panicked protest when they tried to pry him off the teen and so appeased him by leaving him in Tim’s lap. Tim’s voice was quiet as he conversed with Bruce, his fingers going through Dick’s hair in a way that caused him to sigh when he was awake enough to feel the sensation.

When he was partially aware once more Dick found himself in a bed and was about to panic again before he realized that Tim was in the bed as well, curled up about a foot away and breathing the slow and steady tempo of sleep. The boy quickly scooted closer to him and wormed his way into the teen’s arms, head pressed to the other’s chest. Tim tensed as he awoke from the movement. “Dick?” he asked, voicing slurring a little from sleep. “Is everything alright?”

“Thought you’d left,” Dick said, the first words he’s said since his parents fell. Tim murmured some soothing nonsense and pulled him closer, and the two soon fell asleep once again, to awaken in a few hours when the sun was actually in the sky.

Days passed Dick in a haze. He could remember going downstairs every morning with Tim to eat a breakfast made by the Wayne family butler, Alfred, before following Tim to the office he used as his study, where he worked on his homework or on his laptop in general, letting Dick sit next to him or cuddle him with whatever book he picked up from Tim’s shelves for the day. He couldn’t remember most of the books he read, but Alfred would drop by with snacks and try to talk to Dick for a little, and he would nod or shake his head when he could remember to answer, so that was nice. 

At lunch the two would go down to eat and Bruce would be there and he and Tim would talk a little bit about his school work and Wayne Enterprises before they would part, Bruce to go back to his company and Tim to another room in the house where he would do pushups, sit-ups, and other basic exercises. Dick would watch, and do some stretches sometimes that Tim would try to imitate, and then they would go back to the study and work again until one or two when Tim would announce he was done for the day.

The moment Dick would hear that, he would crawl into Tim’s lap and shove his book into the older boy’s hands, demanding he read it while Dick cuddled as closely as he could to him. Tim would usually agree and read two chapters of the book to him, one hand handling the book while the other rubbed Dick’s back and was used to do some limited emoting. Dick enjoyed whenever that happened, and at some point Alfred would come in and offer them tea which Tim would accept gratefully and Dick would take with some caution and liberal use of honey to make it taste good.

The rest of the day was spent with Tim doing various things around the house and in the backyard, Dick following behind as his faithful shadow. They would then eat dinner with Bruce and Alfred, Bruce and Tim filling the evening with small talk that Alfred and sometimes Dick will interject in, Tim always looking proud when Dick spoke up and making Dick preen from his smile. After dinner they would then all head to bed, Dick curling up in Tim’s arms and making scared sounds if he tries to move away.

The days went on like this for weeks, Dick slowly beginning to stray away from Tim’s side to explore the mansion and do things on his own while Tim was doing his schoolwork on his laptop, though he would still walk by the room to make sure Tim was still there. If he didn’t see the teen for too long then Dick would grow nervous, and his mind would inevitably take a darker turn in its thoughts without others around to distract him from it.

And finally the night came that Dick was poking around the old grandfather clock that seemed to always have the wrong time and the false panel within in gave way without a sound, revealing a set of stairs that led down into the darkness. Dick stared at the opening with wide eyes, looked back up at the bedroom he knew Tim was already in, probably talking to his friends, and returned to the opening.

He ventured down into the darkness.


End file.
